"Can I see your scars?"

The question was so out of the blue that Gohan lost his concentration and the axe flew from his hands careening into a nearby tree. Animals scampered away.

Lime at least had the decency to look embarrassed. "Sorry. I shoulda waited 'til you put the axe down."

"Yeah, you should have." Despite it though, Gohan could never stay mad at her. No matter what she did, it was never with malice. If anything, she acted with a type of childish abandon that rather reminded him of how he used to be. The more he hung out with her, the more he seemed to remember being able to pursue a colorful bird without worrying if it was so trap from an alien empire or if he would be snatched away from his family. It wasn't forgetting per say as much as it was remembering the good.

He liked it.

"But why do you ask that?" He retrieved the axe and walked back to her. "Scars aren't the cool thing that books always say they are."

Lime gave a shrug. "I think they're a neat map."

Well, he'd never heard that comparison before and curiosity won out. "A map?"

Nodding firmly and rather pleased with her assessment, the brown haired girl stood, folding her arms casually behind her neck.

It had been a good year since they'd become…well, Gohan didn't know if it was fair to say boyfriend and girlfriend. After all, he'd only be turning twelve this year and Lime was about a year behind him. But it definitely wasn't just friendship anymore.

"Yeah, a map." Lime approached, pushing herself up on her tiptoes and pushed his shirt aside a bit, just enough to expose the mild discoloration on his shoulder. Dende may have healed it but the mark remained. "This was when you decided the life of someone else was more important than yours."

Vegeta.

She circled him, looking him up and down. Reaching upward, she brushed a light line on his neck. "This is where you overpowered yourself."

The Time Chamber.

She came back around to the front and pointed to his neck. It wasn't really a visible scar but hadn't taken her long to realize it sometimes ached, especially in cold weather. "That's where you refused to give up."

Recoome.

Stretching her hand up, she pushed his hair away from his left eye. A tiny darkened piece of skin met her fingers. "That's where you decided to stop being a victim and become a protector."

When the blast from Nappa had killed Piccolo, the searing heat had marred his skin.

He'd told Lime about his adventures, he'd no idea she paid THIS much attention.

"That's all a map to you." Giggling a bit, she fingered his left hand, uncovering the paint that had dried under his fingers during his last painting session. "Just like this." She found another mark on his wrist, a bite from a fish he caught for dinner. "And this." Another, when he'd tried to help Mom bake and burned his wrist. "And this."

Gohan eyed her. "I guess it is, huh?"

"I think so. And I like that."

"You like people all marred up?"

Rolling her eyes, she said, "I like when people recognize all they've done."

He had to admit, thinking about all those events from a different angle certainly did feel different. He still struggled some to think of himself in what he'd call "high" regard, but she made it easier.

"Don't think you'll let me forget, Lime."

"Damn right."

Leaning over, he placed a light kiss on her nose. They'd stuck to hugs and cheek embraces but it seemed appropriate.

Leaving her a flurry of red faced embarrassment, Gohan threw his shirt on the tree branch, asking "Wanna give sparring another go?" He grinned and his scarred biceps triggered something in her that she had only recently begun to recognize.

"You are evil."

"You said you wanted to see my scars." He was teasing her but it was hard not to. Her eyes just lit up and he liked seeing them shine. He was starting to understand why his parents did this so often.

"Gohan, I've been practicin'!" She kicked off her shoes, bounced in place a moment and then ran for him. "Watch me!"

"Plan to."

He'd enjoy it. As she charged at him, putting her hands into fists, she threw first one jab then another, jumping around as she did so. He could see traces of her grandfather's style in her moves but they were only starting to be controlled.

She still flayed about like a fish outside of water a lot of the time but she was learning. Even now, he saw her using that wild energy to jump around, to change positions. It made him always have to track her. Not enough for her to quite lay a finger on him yet but she grew closer each day.

"That's good!" He dodged but kept it slow so she might learn from it. "You're still giving your moves away though."

"You're too fast, goof!"

"You're gettin' faster."

He meant that too. Considering she was still more melee than focused discipline, she was getting faster. If she kept at it, she might start to catch up.

He looked forward to it.

They continued, back and forth, for a long period of time. Occasionally, Lime would tire and they would rest before charging back into the spar once more.

As they moved about, avoiding trees and pits of earth, Gohan watched her.

Scars being a map? It was an odd concept but he found it a bit comforting. Each mark was a memory. Some good, some bad but most mixed. Yet his history was painted over his body.

Looking at Lime, his eyes followed her imperfections.

The circular scar on her cheek where she said a piece of wood had pierced her cheek when hiding from Cell as he killed her parents. How brave did you have to be to resist a cry when losing someone you loved?

He knew that well.

The zigzag on her leg when she'd tried flying too soon and crashed on the ground. Oh, it was exhilarating the first time and you almost forgot that your energy supply was not infinite.

She'd let loose a few choice words and immediately stood up, brushed herself off and ask what she needed to do next.

The fading black eye. He'd caused that one during their last practice session. Seeing her Yelp and the eye swell up had stolen his breath, leaving him utterly confused when she laughed and hugged him tight.

You're not going easy on me, she'd squeaked. Thank you!

Only time he recalled being thanked for punching someone. But he knew all too well how frustrating it was to be coddled when you wanted to grow.

One of her fists came close to his face and grazed his cheek, leaving a thin line of red from one of her nails.

He hoped it would scar.